VW announces wave of layoffs to account for EPA fines

The company said the round of job cuts equals about 5 percent of its global workforce, and is part of a long-term effort to improve profits while transitioning to building more electric cars. (AP Photo)

Auto-giant Volkswagen said Friday that it plans to cut 30,000 jobs in a move to restructure the company following an emissions-cheating scandal that has cost the company billions of dollars to settle with the Environmental Protection Agency and other regulators.

The company was caught installing software in its line of diesel cars that helped them cheat federal emissions standards, in a scandal that has it facing class-action lawsuits and court settlements with EPA and others.

The company said the round of job cuts equals about 5 percent of its global workforce, and is part of a long-term effort to improve profits while transitioning to building more electric cars and offering digital services, according to the Associated Press.

A news conference held at Volkswagen's headquarters in Wolfsburg, Germany, spelled out the details of the layoffs. The company said 23,000 of the job cuts will be made in Germany, saving the company an estimated $4 billion a year over the next four years. The company employs an estimated 120,000 people at its namesake brand in Germany.

Other job cuts are expected to affect operations in South America. It also plans to hire about 9,000 workers to help retool for electric car development.

The savings the company expects would help make up for the fines and other costs from a $15 billion court settlement last month with the EPA and the owners of some 500,000 vehicle owners affected by the emission-cheating software.